From the outside looking in, things could not be much worse for the Green Bay Packers defense. Ironically, prior to the season, most people thought that if any unit on the team would struggle, it would be the offense. Of course, this was due to the questions surrounding Jordan Love and his young core of wide receiver and tight ends. However, Love has looked better than Aaron Rodgers did last year, and is putting up similar/better numbers than his predecessor did in 2008.
The defense, the unit with the most experience and the majority of the team leaders was supposed to be good, or at least better than the offense. But while the offense has had its struggles, it has also overcome them. The same cannot be said for the defense.
While some may point to the number of injuries to star players on defense as a reason for that unit’s struggles, the fact of the matter is that no one in the NFL worth their salt uses injuries as an excuse for failure. No, the Packers’ issues run deeper, all the way to defensive coordinator Joe Barry.
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At this point, it is a foregone conclusion that the Packers will move on from Barry at the end of the season. If or when they do, there will be a plethora of candidates that will want to fill the position. One NFL insider believes that LaFleur will look to former Los Angeles Chargers head coach Brandon Staley.
NFL Insider Thinks that Matt LaFleur Will Hire Brandon Staley to Replace Joe Barry as the Green Bay Packers Defensive Coordinator
When Jim Leonhard, who some also will be on the Packers’ list for defensive coordinator after this season, turned down the job in 2021, the remaining two candidates were Barry and Ejiro Evero. LaFleur opted with experience and his friend in Barry (both him and Evero were on the 2017 Rams coaching staff with LaFleur). Barry also served as the assistant head coach that season.
The reason both Evero and Barry were considered for the job was because both run a Fangio-style defense. Staley, who is also from the Sean McVey coaching tree, also runs that kind of defense. Because of these things (the style of defense and the fact that they come from the same coaching tree), NFL insider Ted Nguyen believes LaFleur will look to Staley as his next defensive coordinator:
Matt LaFleur probably hires Brandon Staley as DC next year and they’ll be set up for a strong season. I’ll get flack for this but Staley isn’t HC material but he’s a good DC.
— Ted Nguyen (@FB_FilmAnalysis) December 18, 2023
Staley was fired as the head coach of the Chargers midway through his third season on the job. He previously served as the defensive coordinator of the Rams in 2020, the outside linebackers coach of the Denver Broncos in 2019, and the outside linebackers coach of the Chicago Bears from 2017-2018.
In his lone year as a defensive coordinator, Staley’s Rams’ defense finished first in the NFL in points allowed and yards allowed per game.
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